I n t e r n a t i o n a l
T e l e c o m m u n i c a t i o n
U n i o n
ITU-T
TELECOMMUNICATION
STANDARDIZATION SECTOR
OF ITU
WORLD TELECOMMUNICATION STANDARDIZATION
ASSEMBLY
Johannesburg, 21-30 October 2008
Resolution 76 – Studies related to conformance
and interoperability testing, assistance to
developing countries, and a possible future ITU
Mark programme
FOREWORD
The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is the United Nations specialized agency in the field of
telecommunications, information and communication technologies (ICTs). The ITU Telecommunication
Standardization Sector (ITU-T) is a permanent organ of ITU. ITU-T is responsible for studying technical,
operating and tariff questions and issuing Recommendations on them with a view to standardizing
telecommunications on a worldwide basis.
The World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (WTSA), which meets every four years,
establishes the topics for study by the ITU-T study groups which, in turn, produce Recommendations on
these topics.
© ITU 2009
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, by any means whatsoever, without the
prior written permission of ITU.
RESOLUTION 76
Studies related to conformance and interoperability testing, assistance to
developing countries1, and a possible future ITU Mark programme
(Johannesburg, 2008)
The World Telecommunication Standardization Assembly (Johannesburg, 2008),
recognizing
a)
that interoperability of international telecommunication networks was the main reason to create ITU
in the year 1865 (International Telegraph Union), and that this remains one of the main goals in the ITU
strategic plan;
b)
that conformity assessment is the accepted way of demonstrating that a product adheres to an
international standard and is increasingly important in the context of World Trade Organization members'
international standardization commitments under the Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade;
c)
that Recommendations ITU-T X.290 to X.296 specify a general methodology for conformance
testing of equipment to Recommendations of the ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector (ITU-T);
d)
that conformance testing would increase the chance of interoperability of equipment conforming to
ITU standards;
e)
that very few of the current ITU-T Recommendations identify interoperability or conformance
testing requirements;
f)
that Resolution 123 (Rev. Antalya, 2006) of the Plenipotentiary Conference instructs the SecretaryGeneral and the Directors of the three Bureaux to work closely with each other in pursuing initiatives that
assist in bridging the standardization gap between developing and developed countries;
g)
that technical training and institutional capacity development for testing and certification are
essential issues for countries to improve their conformity assessment processes, to promote the deployment
of advanced telecommunication networks and to increase global connectivity;
h)
that it is not appropriate for ITU itself to enter into certification and testing of equipment and
services that many regional and national standards bodies also provide for conformance testing;
i)
that Article 17 of the ITU Constitution, while providing that the functions of ITU-T shall fulfil the
purposes of the Union relating to telecommunication standardization, stipulates that such functions are to be
performed "bearing in mind the particular concerns of the developing countries";
j)
the excellent results achieved by ITU in implementing the mark for Global Mobile Personal
Communications Systems (GMPCS),
further recognizing
that providing for interoperability should be the ultimate aim of future ITU-T Recommendations,
____________________
1
These include the least developed countries, small island developing states and countries with economies in
transition.
WTSA-08 – Resolution 76
1
considering
a)
that there is an increasing number of complaints that equipment is often not fully interoperable with
other equipment;
b)
that some countries, especially the developing countries, have not yet acquired the capacity to test
equipment and provide assurance to consumers in their countries;
c)
that increased confidence in the conformance of information and communication technologies (ICT)
equipment with ITU-T Recommendations would increase the chances of end-to-end interoperability of
equipment from different manufacturers, and would assist developing countries in the choice of solutions,
noting
a)
that conformance and interoperability requirements to support testing are essential components for
developing interoperable equipment that is based on ITU-T Recommendations;
b)
that considerable practical experience exists within the ITU-T membership regarding the production
of relevant testing standards and the testing procedures on which the actions proposed in this resolution are
based;
c)
the need to assist developing countries in facilitating solutions which will exhibit interoperability
and reduce the cost of systems and equipment procurement by operators, particularly in the developing
countries, whilst improving product quality;
d)
that when interoperability experiments or testing have not been performed, users may have suffered
from the lack of interconnection performance between equipment from different manufacturers,
taking into account
a)
that ITU-T has in the past occasionally initiated conformity and interoperability tests, as reported in
ITU-T A-series Recommendation, Supplement 2;
b)
that the ITU standardization resources are limited and interoperability testing requires specific
technical infrastructure;
c)
that a different set of experts is required for interoperability testing standardization, product
development, and product testing;
d)
that it is of advantage if interoperability testing is done by users of the standard who were not
involved in the standardization process itself, rather than the standardization experts who have written the
specifications;
e)
that collaboration with external testing bodies is therefore necessary,
resolves
1
that ITU-T study groups develop the necessary conformance testing Recommendations for
telecommunication equipment as soon as possible;
2
that ITU-T Recommendations to address interoperability testing shall be progressed as quickly as
possible;
3
that ITU-T, in collaboration with the other Sectors as appropriate, shall develop a programme to:
i)
assist developing countries in identifying human and institutional capacity-building and training
opportunities in conformity and interoperability testing;
ii)
assist developing countries in establishing regional or subregional conformity and interoperability
centres suitable to perform conformity and interoperability testing as appropriate;
2
WTSA-08 – Resolution 76
4
that conformance and interoperability testing requirements shall provide for verification of the
parameters defined in the current and future ITU-T Recommendations for telecommunication/ICT equipment
and services, and for interoperability testing to ensure full compatibility,
instructs the Director of the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau
1
in cooperation with the Radiocommunication Bureau and the Telecommunication Development
Bureau, to conduct exploratory activities in each region in order to identify and prioritize the problems faced
by developing countries related to achieving interoperability of ICT equipment and services;
2
based on results of instructs the Director of the Telecommunication Standardization Bureau 1
above, to study the following items:
i)
the overall effect on ITU and manufacturers
ii)
legal and national and international regulatory implications
iii)
cost of set-up of facility
iv)
location of testing facility
v)
measures to be taken to build the necessary human-resource capacities;
3
to carry out the necessary studies with a view to introducing the use of ITU Mark for a possible
future ITU Mark programme as a voluntary programme permitting manufacturers and service providers to
make a visible declaration that their equipment conforms to ITU-T Recommendations, and to increasing the
probability of interoperability, and to consider its possible application as an indication of a degree of
interoperability capability in the future;
4
to study the financial and legal implications for ITU-T and for ICT industries, and all other concerns
raised with regard to this proposal on the possible introduction of the ITU Mark for a possible future
ITU Mark programme;
5
to involve experts and external entities as appropriate;
6
to submit the results of these studies to the 2009 session of the ITU Council for its consideration
and required actions,
instructs the study groups
1
to identify as soon as possible existing and future ITU-T Recommendations that would be
candidates for interoperability, taking into account the needs of the membership (e.g. interoperability of nextgeneration network (NGN) equipment, terminals, audio/video codecs, access and transport network), that are
capable of providing end-to-end interoperable services on a global scale, adding to their content, if
necessary, specific requirements within their scope;
2
to prepare those ITU-T Recommendations, identified in instructs the study groups 1 above, with a
view to conducting conformity and interoperability tests as appropriate,
invites the Council
1
to consider the Director's report referred to in instructs the Director of the Telecommunication
Standardization Bureau 6 above;
2
to report as appropriate on this matter to the 2010 plenipotentiary conference, taking into account
Resolution 158 (Antalya, 2006) of the Plenipotentiary Conference on financial issues for consideration by
the Council,
WTSA-08 – Resolution 76
3
invites Member States and Sector Members
1
to contribute to the implementation of this resolution;
2
to encourage national and regional testing entities to assist ITU-T in implementing this resolution.
4
WTSA-08 – Resolution 76